New COVID-19 Resources

We want to continue sharing resources available to you during this pandemic, not just from SimplyHome, but from other organizations within the IDD community. One of those organizations is Health Risk Screening, Inc. (HRS). 

As the situation with COVID-19 develops, HRS is committed to providing those who work in the field of IDD supports with practical, sensible, and usable health information regarding identifying those at most risk and steps that can be taken to reduce the severity of the impact of this disease.

HRS focuses on first, identifying risk in people with IDD, and second, providing solutions and action steps to mitigate that risk. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, HRS has provided special bulletins, webinars addressing specific IDD and COVID related topics, free infection control resources, free Health Passport access, and more on their COVID-19 webpage. 

HRS Webinars

Partnering with AAIDD, webinars are being delivered offering specific recommendations on various scenarios that many supporters of people with IDD are facing. In an upcoming AAIDD/HRS webinar on May 6, 2020, Dr. Craig Escude, the president of HRS, will discuss the importance of helping healthcare providers and others see people with IDD as PEOPLE, first. As concern has arisen about the rationing of scarce healthcare resources, this webinar will focus on what WE can do as individuals to ensure that decisions to withhold care are not being made on the sole fact that a person has a disability. 

HRS Health Risk Screening Tool

HRS’s Health Risk Screening Tool is the most widely used and validated health risk screening instrument for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. A recent publication in the peer-reviewed Journal of Nursing Measurement validates that the HRST is predictive of mortality in people with IDD and therefore “can serve as a basis for establishing healthcare needs and determining nursing care acuity for people with IDD” according to the study’s authors. There are specific reports in the HRST that can identify who is at most risk form serious illness from COVID-19 and similar illnesses. This information can guide states and agencies in allocating resources to where they are needed most. A 2-minute video introduction to the HRST can be found here.

Additional offerings from HRS include eLearning modules on The Fatal Five, Choking, Physical and Nutritional Supports, Person-centered Thinking, and, most recently, the Curriculum in IDD Healthcare. The Curriculum consists of 6 web-based modules that provide physicians, nurses, and other clinicians with the fundamentals necessary to provide healthcare for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. 

For more information about HRS and its tools for reducing risk, visit HRSTonline.com 

For SimplyHome Resources Available During COVID-19, such as remote supports through enabling technology, go to https://www.simply-home.com/covid